The present invention relates generally to dialing a telephone number, and specifically to indirectly dialing the number.
A telephone xe2x80x9clinexe2x80x9d has a unique telephone number, based on an international addressing recommendation E.164, associated with the line. Recommendation E.164, published by the International Telecommunication Union, Geneva, Switzerland, describes the number as comprising a country code, a national destination (or area) code and a subscriber number. In order to access the line, which may be connected to a communication device such as a landline telephone, a mobile telephone, or a facsimile machine, the unique number is dialed by a caller. Depending on the location of the caller in relation to the line, the caller may not need to dial the complete number in order to access the line. For example, a caller dialing from a mobile or landline telephone based in the United Kingdom, and dialing to a number in the United Kingdom, does not need to dial the country code xe2x80x9c44xe2x80x9d of the United Kingdom. Similarly, a caller in area code 212 in the United States does not need to dial either country code xe2x80x9c1xe2x80x9d or area code 212 if the caller is dialing from a telephone based in area code 212.
In the disclosure and in the claims, the term xe2x80x9cdialxe2x80x9d is assumed to refer to use of a rotary dial or a numeric keypad or other actuator which is able to convey signals representative of a telephone number. The term xe2x80x9cdialxe2x80x9d is also assumed to refer to voice dialing, where vocal sounds are transformed to signals representative of the telephone number.
Rather than dialing the unique number, or the part of the number, indirect dialing systems are known in the art. One such system uses letters which are already associated with numbers on the dial of a telephone, e.g., A, B, and C are associated with xe2x80x9c2.xe2x80x9d A telephone number may thus be converted at least partly to letters, and the letters themselves may be used as a mnemonic and dialed. It will be appreciated that such indirect dialing systems use the existing E.164 number format in a transliterated form.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,949,868 to Hamano, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a call processing system for an intelligent network. The system includes a number translation table in a service exchange point which has dial numbers and corresponding translation numbers stored in the point. When a call is made to the service exchange point, the dial numbers and the translation numbers stored in the number translation table are accessed, and a translation number corresponding to the inputted call is generated. The dial numbers comprise 800 or 900 numbers, which are translated to local, typically 7-digit, numbers.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,275,574 to Oran, whose disclosure is incorporated herein by reference, describes a dial plan mapper which manages the translation between E.164 numbers and Internet hosts so as to provide voice over the Internet (VoIP) services. A dial string is received and predetermined match patterns, such as a four digit extension that does not start with 0, 9 or 8, corresponding to a local extension call in some private branch exchange (PBX) systems, are compared with the dial string. The dial plan mapper identifies the longest match of the dial string and outputs call configuration information associated with the identified match pattern.
The Internet Engineering Task Force, in conjunction with the International Telecommunication Union, has produced a standard, request for comments (RFC) 2916, which translates E.164 telephone numbers into IP addresses. RFC 2916, incorporated herein by reference, comprises a protocol and a database that maps telephone numbers to Internet domain names. RFC 2916 discusses the use of the Domain Name System (DNS) for storage of E.164 numbers, and how the DNS can be used for identifying available services connected to one E.164 number.
It is an object of some aspects of the present invention to provide a method and apparatus for indirect dialing of a telephone number.
In preferred embodiments of the present invention, a telephone number of a communication device is associated with an identifier of a user of the device. The identifier comprises any alphanumeric string, such as a social security number, a car license number, or a passport number, which is able to identify the user of the device. The association between the string and the telephone number is preferably generated by the user. Alternatively, the association is generated by an entity having knowledge of the string and the telephone number. Preferably, the string is able to uniquely identify the user. Alternatively, the string is able to identify a group of users which includes the user of the device.
The association is stored in a database. A caller who wishes to contact the user dials the identifier, which most preferably includes a prefix chosen from a group of prefixes, each prefix defining a type of string used as the identifier. A telephone network within which the caller is operating accepts the call, and, responsive to the prefix, accesses the database. Alternatively, rather than providing a group of prefixes, one prefix is implemented in the telephone network, and used by the caller, as a notification to access the database. If the string uniquely identifies the user, the database provides the telephone number of the communication device in response. In cases where the string identifies a group of users, the caller is queried by a server in the network so as to identify the user of the device, and after the identification the database provides the telephone number. The network then continues the process of placing the call in the standard manner. The caller is thus able to contact the communication device indirectly, without knowledge of the telephone number of the device.
The communication device may be any type of landline phone, mobile phone, facsimile machine, or any other apparatus which is dialable by the telephone number.
In some preferred embodiments of the present invention, the identifier comprises a car license number which is automatically read by an imaging system under control of the caller. Most preferably, the system dials the license number after reading the number.
There is therefore provided, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a method for dialing a telephone number indirectly, including:
obtaining an alphanumeric identifier that is assigned to a telephone subscriber;
associating the identifier with a destination telephone number of the telephone subscriber to form a mapping therebetween;
storing the mapping in a lookup table;
dialing the identifier using an originating telephone; using the identifier as a pointer to the lookup table so as to recover the destination telephone number from the stored mapping; and
establishing a connection between the originating telephone and a destination telephone via the destination telephone number.
Preferably, the originating telephone and the destination telephone each include a communication device chosen from a group of devices including a mobile telephone, a landline telephone, and a facsimile machine.
Further preferably, the destination telephone number includes a first string formatted in an industry-standard format, and the identifier includes a second string formatted differently from the industry-standard format.
Further preferably, the identifier includes an identifier-prefix and an identifier-string, wherein the identifier-prefix classifies a type of the identifier-string, and wherein the identifier-string is assigned by an entity associated with the type and independent of the telephone subscriber.
Further preferably, the entity includes an official body authorized to assign the identifier-string.
Preferably, the entity includes a credit card company, and the identifier-string includes a credit card number.
Further preferably, the identifier includes an identifier-prefix which acts as a notification that the identifier is not an industry-standard telephone number and that the method is to be invoked.
Preferably, the originating telephone is operative in a first communication network, and the destination telephone is operative in a second communication network.
Preferably, the alphanumeric identifier includes a string which acts as an identification of the telephone subscriber.
Alternatively or additionally, the alphanumeric identifier includes a string which acts as an identification of an object associated with the telephone subscriber.
Preferably, the identifier includes a car license number, and dialing the identifier includes forming an image of a car license plate and recovering the car license number from the image.
There is further provided, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, apparatus for dialing a telephone number indirectly, including:
a memory wherein is stored a lookup table including a mapping associating an alphanumeric identifier that is assigned to a telephone subscriber with a destination telephone number; and
a communication server which is adapted to receive the identifier as a dialed input from an originating telephone, to access the lookup table responsive thereto, to recover the destination telephone number by using the identifier as a pointer to the lookup table, and to provide the destination telephone number to a communication network so as to enable the network to establish a connection between the originating telephone and a destination telephone via the destination telephone number.
Preferably, the originating telephone and the destination telephone each include a communication device chosen from a group of devices including a mobile telephone, a landline telephone, and a facsimile machine.
Preferably, the destination telephone number includes a first numeric string formatted in an industry-standard format, and the identifier includes a second numeric string formatted differently from the industry-standard format.
Preferably, the identifier includes an identifier-prefix and an identifier-string, wherein the identifier-prefix classifies a type of the identifier-string, and wherein the identifier-string is assigned by an entity associated with the type and independent of the telephone subscriber.
Further preferably, the entity includes an official body authorized to assign the identifier-string.
Alternatively or additionally, the entity includes a credit card company, and the identifier-string includes a credit card number.
Preferably, the identifier includes an identifier-prefix which acts as a notification that the identifier is not an industry-standard telephone number and that the method is to be invoked.
Preferably, the communication network includes a first communication network wherein the originating telephone is operative, and wherein the destination telephone is operative in a second communication network coupled to the first communication network.
Preferably, the identifier includes a numerical string which acts as an identification of the telephone subscriber.
Alternatively or additionally, the identifier includes a numerical string which acts as an identification of an object associated with the telephone subscriber.
Preferably, the identifier includes a car license number, and including an imaging system which is adapted to form an image of a car license plate, to recover the car license number from the image, and to convey the car license number to the communication server.
There is further provided, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a method for dialing a telephone number indirectly, including:
obtaining an alphanumeric identifier that is assigned to a first and a second telephone subscriber;
associating the identifier with a first destination telephone number of the first telephone subscriber to form a first mapping therebetween;
associating the identifier with a second destination telephone number of the second telephone subscriber to form a second mapping therebetween;
storing the first and the second mapping in a lookup table;
dialing the identifier using an originating telephone;
using the identifier as a pointer to the lookup table so as to recover the first and the second destination telephone numbers from the stored mappings;
choosing one of the first and second destination telephone numbers as a desired destination telephone number; and
establishing a connection between the originating telephone and a desired destination telephone via the desired destination telephone number.
Preferably, choosing one of the first and second destination telephone numbers includes requesting a caller dialing the identifier to choose between the telephone numbers.
There is further provided, according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, apparatus for dialing a telephone number indirectly, including:
a memory wherein is stored a lookup table including a first mapping associating an alphanumeric identifier that is assigned to a first telephone subscriber with a first destination telephone number and a second mapping associating the alphanumeric identifier that is assigned to a second telephone subscriber with a second destination telephone number; and
a communication server which is adapted to receive the identifier as a dialed input from an originating telephone, to access the lookup table responsive thereto, to recover the first and the second destination telephone numbers by using the identifier as a pointer to the lookup table, to request a caller dialing the identifier to choose a desired destination telephone number from the first and the second destination telephone numbers, and, responsive to the choice, to provide the desired destination telephone number to a communication network so as to enable the network to establish a connection between the originating telephone and a destination telephone via the desired destination telephone number.
The present invention will be more fully understood from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments thereof, taken together with the drawings, in which: